Chocolate Easter Nests
These chocolate Easter nests will bring much colour and joy to your Easter table. Whether you’re enjoying them at home or sharing them with friends and family, they are a delightful addition to any Easter celebration. They’re gluten, egg, nut, and dairy free too!
Chocolate As A Healthy Snack
I used to get asked whether anything chocolatey was a healthy snack a lot in clinic, and my answer was always yes. This is because the health benefits of cacao are many – hurrah! It’s rich in antioxidants (dark has more than milk or white), magnesium, polyphenols (which is good for the gut) and flavonoids too (good for heart and brain health).
To add to that, this chocolate Easter nests recipe also boasts other benefits. The base ingredient is chocolate buckini clusters. They’re made using buckwheat groats, which is a highly nutritious prebiotic-rich food. They’re a good source of easily digestible minerals such as zinc and magnesium, and also offer anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.
Ingredients Needed For This Recipe
There is a bit of a list here and some ingredients may be a bit trickier to find than those I generally use. Where I think it might be hard to come by, I’ve provided another option.
- Loving Earth Chocolate Buckini Clusters – if you can’t find these, chocolate granola is a good swap. Just ensure there are no super chunky pieces, or the nests won’t stick together.
- Desiccated coconut – gives the chocolate Easter nests another level of flavour. Plus, it makes them reminiscent of a chocolate crackle… which all the Australians will know and love from their childhood.
- Cacao nibs – these add a little crunch and a deliciously dark chocolatey taste.
- Cocoa powder – for an added chocolate flavour! You could potentially go without this but it does make the nests extra delicious.
- Maple syrup – adds hints of caramel and toffee and provides a nice balance to the chocolate.
- Vanilla essence – works to enhance all the flavours from the other ingredients in the recipe.
- Coconut oil – this is helping the nests adhere when they’re chilled. It’s also the reason they’ll fall apart if they’re brought to room temperature. Always remember to serve straight from the fridge!
- Cacao butter – gives these Easter nests a fuller and much more rich flavour than using coconut oil alone. If this is not stocked in your supermarket you could try it with milk or dark chocolate too. In this case I’d leave out the cocoa.
- Sultanas – Are simply adding sweetness to this treat.
- Mini Easter eggs – Any you like is fine. They’re decorative so go for bright colours.
This really is quite a forgiving recipe, so you could definitely get experimental with it. Swap the sultanas for dried cranberries or blueberries, add choc chips instead of cacao nibs… whatever you like!
How To Make These Chocolate Easter Nests
Once you have all your ingredients laid out this is relatively quick to make. It’s a melt, mix, chill and serve recipe. And one that will be loved by kids and adults alike. They make excellent Easter gifts too!
- Line a muffin tin with baking cups.
- Mix the chocolate buckinis, desiccated coconut, cacao nibs, cacao powder, vanilla and maple syrup together in a large bowl.
- Combine the coconut oil and cacao butter in a small saucepan and melt over a low heat. Don’t let it boil and switch it off as soon as everything is melted.
- Pour the oil mixture into the dry mixture and stir until everything is well combined.
- Spoon the mixture evenly into the baking cups then start to form out a nest. You can do this with a small glass or the back of a teaspoon. Place in the freezer for 30 minutes to firm up.
- Remove from the freezer and decorate with some mini chocolate eggs then place on your Easter table.
These will start to melt and fall apart if left out too long so be sure to serve straight from the fridge. Any that are not eaten should be stored in the fridge as well.
FAQ
Once made if you have leftovers they should be stored in the fridge. The coconut oil and cocoa butter will liquify if they get too hot and the nests will start to crumble.
Once the nests have been formed, they can be kept in the freezer if you’re making them well in advance. They will keep there for many months though keep in mind freezer burn can affect foods. This generally happens when they’ve been kept for too long and both the taste and texture can be affected.
Watch How To Make This Recipe
Chocolate Easter nests
Equipment
- 12 hole muffin tin
- Large baking cup liners
Ingredients
- 2 cups Loving Earth Chocolate Buckini Clusters (see note 1)
- 1 cup desiccated coconut
- 1/4 cup cacao nibs
- 1/3 cup cocoa
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla essence
- 1/4 cup coconut oil
- 1/3 cup cacao butter, (see note 2)
- 1/4 cup sultanas
- Mini Easter eggs, to fill the nests with
Instructions
- Line a muffin tin with 12 baking cups.
- In a large bowl, mix together the Loving Earth chocolate buckinis, desiccated coconut, sultanas, cacao nibs, cacao powder, vanilla, and maple syrup.
- Combine the coconut oil and cacao butter in a small saucepan and melt over a low heat. Do not let it boil. Switch off as soon as everything is melted and remove from the heat.
- Pour the oil mixture into the dry mixture and stir until everything is well combined.
- Spoon the mixture evenly into the baking cups then start to form out a nest. Either do this by pushing down on the mixture with a small glass – a shot glass is ideal – or with the back of a teaspoon. Either method should leave you with a 'nest'. Place in the freezer for 30minutes to firm up.
- Remove from the freezer and decorate with some mini chocolate eggs then serve straight away. Keep any extra nests in the fridge.
Notes
Nutrition
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Festivity at its best. This is so innovative and very creative too. Kids would love to handle it as well. Lovely planning for a decorative Easter Table.
Thanks so much Veena!
My kids are so excited to try this! Looking great!
Thanks, Jo! Hope you all enjoy them.
What a beautiful and innovative Easter treat. I’m not sure I can find the chocolate buckinis here in Italy but will try to order online if I can. .
Thanks Jacqueline! Something like Nature Mix – Muesli Crunchy con Cioccolato Uvetta e Nocciole could work well for this.
These look so cute for Easter treats and fun to make too.The children and adults will love them!
Thanks, Amanda!
What an original idea for Easter treats! They’re the perfect idea to make with kids.
Thanks so much Alice!